Have you noticed that there’s an epidemic of LinkedIn posts with the “edited” status? A philanthropic billionaire like Bill Gates can get away with typos in his daily public posts, but the rest of us can’t afford it.
This year I went over 150 work days without making typos in my communication. Here’re my generic tips (which AI can’t generate for you) which you can particularize to your unique situation.
1) Assessment of your language ability is only as fair as the relevant factors which were considered during the assessment. Others may not have access to all these relevant factors, or may not intend to consider them, as the philosopher Franz Kafka implied in the parable of the gate-keeper [1]. For example, missing just two hours of sleep for 10 days has been shown to be the same as going without sleep for 24 hours straight, which may significantly affect your System 2 activities like producing language with agency or proofreading [2] [3]. Do others have access to this factor about you when they’re assessing you?
2) Whenever possible avoid conversations (verbally or in writing) with individuals who gate-keep the language for the wrong reasons or who are incapable of regulating their biases. As the interlocator’s intention, and your attitude towards them can impact your language production, or its reception and assessment [4]. When you can’t avoid it, focus. At the end, empathise, forgive their shortcomings, and move on as soon as possible.
3) Genuinely enjoy your coworkers, even the ones who might be out to get you.
4) Be your own coach and critic. Take into consideration all the relevant factors, and if you are capable, use the Kantian categorical imperative approach to assess the fairness of your actions against your own unique situation*. Learn, practice and measure your progress over a respectable duration of time.
5) Most importantly, do it for the right reasons. If your language production performance affects your emotions, or if it can hijack your rationality then society can use it as a handle to control you. Society can still create a false narrative about it and deny or delay the wealth or the opportunities you deserve, but I hope you have the moral fiber to see the error in their ways and the consequences that follow. Be kind in your victory.
*This approach is only as good as your grasp of the soft-sciences and your beliefs.
Dumidu Handakumbura © 2025.
[1] - Franz Kafka, The Trail.
[2] - Why We Sleep, Matthew Walker.
[3] - Thinking fast and slow.
[4] - Steven Pinker, The Language Instinct.
